Etymologically

scholaris

Etymology and origin of the Latin word scholaris

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
348/49–c. 413 AD, Prudentius
Ultimate origin
Latin schola
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Ancient Greek σχολή
Latin schola
Italian scuola
Dutch school
English school
French école
German Schule
Latin scholaris
English scholar

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [skʰɔˈɫaː.rɪs][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [skoˈlaː.ris][1]

Forms

scholāris (neuter scholāre); third-declension two-termination adjective[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin schola (“school”) + -āris.[2][1][3] The noun schola is from Ancient Greek σχολή (skholḗ, “leisure; lecture; school”).[4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's only citation is a Latin papyrus (P Mich 468) that mentions chartas scholares duas, two sheets of school paper.[2] Köbler's first author is Prudentius, who speaks of the murmur of a school.[6][3][7]

Semantic evolution

In Late Latin it meant “of a school”: Martianus Capella has it of the first elements of learning and Jerome of a school declamation.[3][8][9] Since schola was also a corps of the palace guard, Sulpicius Severus speaks of the scholārēs ālae, the guard cavalry, and the Theodosian and Justinian codes use scholārēs for the imperial guard.[7][3][8]

Medieval Latin used the noun for a soldier of the royal guard, a pupil or student, and a scholast in charge of a school.[10] British sources have puer scholaris for a schoolboy, the noun for a student at a university, and the adjective for what is learned or scholarly.[11] Du Cange records it for a master who teaches in the schools and for a girl being brought up for the monastic life.[12] The word was widely borrowed: Old English took it as scolere, the source of English scholar, and Old High German as skuolāri.[13][6]

Timeline

  • 348/49–c. 413 AD – Prudentius speaks of the murmur of a school.[3][7][6]
  • c. 363–c. 420 AD – Sulpicius Severus uses it of the guard cavalry.[7][8][6]
  • c. 383–419/420 AD – Jerome speaks of a school declamation.[3][6]
  • 438 AD – The Theodosian Code uses scholārēs for the imperial guard.[3][6]
  • 5th century AD – Martianus Capella uses it of the elements of learning.[3][6]
  • 1155 – Peter of Blois, in a letter, speaks of the camps of the schools.[11]
  • 1214 – In an inquiry a nun says she had been a scholaris, a girl brought up for the monastic life.[12]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Of a school, used in school.[2][3][7]
  2. (Late Latin) Of the imperial guard.[7][8]
  3. (Medieval Latin) Of scholars or studies; scholarly, learned.[11][6]

Noun

  1. (Late Latin, in the plural) The imperial guard.[3][7][8][1]
  2. (Medieval Latin) A soldier of the royal guard.[10]
  3. (Medieval Latin) A pupil, student, scholar.[10][11][1]
  4. (Medieval Latin) A master of a school, a scholast.[10][12]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ Saalfeld, Günther Alexander (1874), Index Graecorum vocabulorum in linguam latinam translatorum, Berlin: Weidmann
  5. ^ Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 10, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  8. ^ a b c d e Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  9. ^ Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  10. ^ a b c d Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  11. ^ a b c d Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press
  12. ^ a b c du Cange, Charles du Fresne, et al. (1883–1887), Glossarium mediae et infimae latinitatis, augmented ed. by Léopold Favre, Niort: L. Favre
  13. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com

Borrowed into

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Scholaris.” Etymologically, 24 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/scholaris. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

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